P213: Leveraging integrative STEM undergraduate research experiences at Elizabethtown College to optimize student participation and student learning while economizing on resources

James MacKay, Kristi Kneas, Jeffrey Rood (Elizabethtown College, USA)

It is with increased urgency that STEM faculty members consider the design of research experiences that best prepare students while also serving as good stewards of limited institutional resources. In this presentation, we highlight ways in which integrative and applied research opportunities are leveraged to increase student participation and learning, while also addressing resource constraints that are exacerbated in this tight economy. Strategies to be shared include: (1) modification of a traditional summer research program to include inter- and intra-disciplinary research projects, rising first years through juniors, students from under-served geographical locations, and a multi-disciplinary research symposium, (2) inclusion of interdisciplinary research projects, fundamental research, and service learning research experiences in the teaching laboratory, and (3) development of an integrative, intra-disciplinary capstone course. Successes and challenges will be identified and discussed, as will student outcomes and the means by which the desired outcomes are measured.